Policarpa Salavarrieta - revolutionary heroine

Policarpa Salavarrieta (c. January 26, 1795 – November 14, 1817) was a spy for the anti-Spanish revolutionary movement in the early 1800s. Working as a seamstress in the homes of Loyalists, she was able to gather information for the insurgency. After evidence of her espionage was discovered on captured rebels she was executed for treason. Each year Colombia celebrates November 14  as the "Day of the Colombian Woman" in honor of this "heroína de la Independencia."

In 1817, the royalist elite in Nueva Granada (now Colombia) were desperately trying to hold on to their power and deploying troops to quash the insurgencies popping up around the country. Of course, they did this while holding tightly to their colonial lifestyle, with all the trappings of wealth -- beautiful homes, good food, and fine clothing. To maintain this level of decadence required staff. And, in the end, it would be the staff who would be their undoing.

An unassuming seamstress could easily overhear important discussions, watch the coming and going of visitors, and sneak undetected about the house in order to steal maps and other important documents, all under the guise of mending the family's clothing and linens. And that's exactly what Policarpa Salavarrieta did.

Her true name is unknown, but by the time she was spying for the revolution she went by Policarpa, or "La Pola," to hide her identity from the Spanish forces. As a child La Pola had been trained as a seamstress, and she used that to gain access to the homes of important members of the Spanish elite.

While the housewives who hired her may have thought of her as quiet and compliant, she was anything but. Like other household spies throughout history, she maintained a facade of discretion, when in reality she was making lists of names of major royalists, and documenting their plans. After work, she would deliver these lists to leaders in the rebellion.

When she wasn't mending laundry and spying on her employers, she was actively working for the revolution by passing messages between rebel groups, helping them buy weapons, and recruiting more support for their cause, often encouraging soldiers in the Royal Army to desert their posts and join the revolution.

La Pola knew the risks of what she was doing. Her devotion to the resistance was stronger than her fear of death. When her name was discovered on documents taken from captured rebels, she was charged with treason, and sentenced to stand before a firing squad. Even as she was being led to her execution, she refused to be silent, yelling her hatred for royalist rule and calling for the crowd of onlookers to avenge her.

In the end, the rebellion succeeded and Spanish rule ended. And Policarpa, a fighter who captured the heart of the people, became a celebrated heroine of the independence of Colombia. News of her death spread across the country, inspiring more to join the revolution. In 1967, the Congress of Colombia designated November 14, the date of her execution, as the Day of the Colombian Woman in honor of her bravery in the fight for independence.

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